Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) have received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the seven analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $69.00.

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of ESCO Technologies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. B. Riley set a $71.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Stephens set a $65.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 6th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC raised shares of ESCO Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 21st.

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ESCO Technologies (NYSE ESE) opened at $62.35 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1,610.00, a P/E ratio of 30.87 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. ESCO Technologies has a 1 year low of $50.30 and a 1 year high of $66.80.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, meeting the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.33. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 10.89% and a return on equity of 8.20%. The firm had revenue of $173.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $168.53 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.47 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 18.5% on a year-over-year basis. research analysts predict that ESCO Technologies will post 2.65 EPS for the current year.

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 18th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 2nd. ESCO Technologies’s payout ratio is presently 15.84%.

In other ESCO Technologies news, SVP Alyson S. Barclay sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.00, for a total value of $310,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 101,658 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,302,796. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Larry W. Solley sold 4,288 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.90, for a total transaction of $265,427.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 24,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,532,025. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. KBC Group NV grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 57.7% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 9,430 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $565,000 after acquiring an additional 3,450 shares in the last quarter. Municipal Employees Retirement System of Michigan grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 49.1% in the third quarter. Municipal Employees Retirement System of Michigan now owns 11,000 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $660,000 after acquiring an additional 3,620 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 2.6% in the third quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 267,932 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $16,196,000 after acquiring an additional 6,682 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 10.3% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 304,860 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $18,275,000 after acquiring an additional 28,445 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 5.8% in the third quarter. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. now owns 161,656 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $9,692,000 after acquiring an additional 8,875 shares in the last quarter. 95.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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ESCO Technologies Company Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc (ESCO) is a producer of engineered products and systems sold to customers for utility, industrial, aerospace and commercial applications. The Company operates through four segments: Filtration/Fluid Flow (Filtration), RF Shielding and Test (Test), Utility Solutions Group (USG) and Technical Packaging.